Wednesday, 8 March 2017

Hafizabad is a city in the north central Punjab, about 45 kilometers west of Gujranwala. During the last few years, I passed many times through it on my way to Gujranwala, but could never explored it. Though I was vaguely aware of the existence of a historical gurdwara, but never got a chance to find it. Finally on 20 December 2016, I reached Hafizabad from Sargodha, my base camp and after taking guidance from a few persons, we found the gurdwara, which is situated at 32° 3'58.11"N, 73°40'56.09"E, near Government Muslim High School.

After taking a few pictures of the beautiful facade I knocked at the front door, with some doubts in my mind to receive any response. A handsome man opened the door and turned out to be a policeman of the special branch of Punjab Police and informed us that the building was in control of the police. At that point, I lost hope of ever entering the police station. But after a few questions about our origin and purpose of visiting this place, he allowed me and my cousin Shah Sultan to enter the premises of the gurdwara.

Main entrance of the Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi - Hafizabad (20.12.2016.)

Main entrance of the Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi - Hafizabad (20.12.2016.)

ਗੁਰਦਵਾਰਾ ਛੇਵੀਂ ਪਾਤਸ਼ਾਹੀ

ਸ੍ਰੀ ਹਰਗੋਬਿੰਦ ਸਾਹਿਬ

گوردوارہ چھیویں پاتشاہی

سری گرو ہرگوبند صاحب

Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi

Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib

Right after passing through the deorhi, we found the building of Sachkhand in from of us, situated in a vast courtyard. On the left side are Darbar Hall and Langar Hall. The atmosphere inside was peaceful and serene. After some reluctance the police officer, who requested me not to mention his name, allowed me to take pictures. The different buildings of the gurdwara are still in a reasonably good condition. The thing which impressed me the most was perfect cleanliness in all parts of this gurdwara.

Front view of the Sachkhand - (20.012.2016.)

Side view of the Sachkhand - (20.12.2016.)

A fictitious grave inside the Sachkhand - (20.12.2016.)

While entering the Sachkhand I casually asked our host, that should I remove my shoes and apparently equally casually he replied that at least they all do so. That was a cue enough for me to show due respect to this holy place. The most important thing in the sacred room is a grave. Which our host police officer confirmed is a fictitious one and probably after the departure of the Sikhs, somebody with the aim of occupying this beautiful complex made.

Rooms at the backside of the gurdwara. Probably for yatrees. - (20.012.2016.)

A side view of the Darbar Hall - (20.12.2016.)

Backside view of the Sachkhand - (20.12.2016.)

View of the entrance from inside - (20.12.2016.)

Probably Darbar Hall - (20.12.2016.)

I in front of the Darbar Hall - (20.12.2016.)

View of the Darbar Hall from inside - (20.12.2016.)

Another view of the hall - (20.12.2016.)

This gurdwara is considered historical because Sixth Sikh Guru, Hargobind Singh Ji (1595 - 1644 AD) visited and stayed at this place and this gurdwara was built in his memory. Mr Iqbal Qaiser, has written a book "Historical Sikh Shrines", in which he gives the history and the importance of this gurdwara as under:

This historic place is also known as Rori Sahib and Killa Sahib. It is situated in Mohalla Guru Nanakpur of Hafizabad City. This place holds a distinction that Patshah of Meeri and Peeri Sat Gur Hargobind Ji came here from Rasool Nagar while returning from Kashmir. The place where he took rest came to be called Rori Sahib and the spot where he tied his horse became known as Killa Sahib. For sometime it remained a mud building but afterwards Sangat built it with solid bricks. 40 ghumaon of land in Hafizabad and 28 ghumaon land in village Batera is in the name of this Gurdwara since the Sikh rule. Over and above it the Kapur family has made endowment of a considerable estate to the Gurdwara. Once a fair used to be held on 18th of Har. Since a few years a grave has been erected inside the darbar but no one is buried in it. It is an empty grave. It is called Lalan Wali Sarkar and thus the custom of holding an annual fair is maintained.

Inside the Sachkhand I found a few inscription on the marble walls. Which I have transliterated after a considerable effort. And for that purpose, I have learnt Gurmukhi and thus fulfilled a long overdue wish.

I had almost missed it while concluding our visit when the police officer drew my attention to the floor in front of the deorhi. There I found dozens of square marble tiles, with the names of those inscribed on them, who contributed to the construction of this gurdwara.

These tiles give a lot of information about the community and their devotion to this gurdwara. The last tile is most important because it gives a date of the donation of the contributor, and that is 15 Magh, 1988, Samvat, corresponding to 28 January, 1932 AD. I think the construction work on the gurdwara started sometime in 1920s and by 1932 it was almost complete.

Two old houses near the Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi, Hafizabad - (20.12.2016.)

Another view of the old house near the gurdwara - (20.12.2016.)

Another old house - (20.12.2016.

At the end of our visit, our host took us to his office and ordered tea and biscuits for us and also informed that still occasionally Sikhs come to visit this gurdwara. During our chat, he expressed the importance of tolerance among different religions and sects. Visiting this gurdwara gave me a glimpse into the past, of a time and society which was considerably different from today. It also showed the devotion and love people showed in its construction and a sad realization that they had had to abandon it suddenly.

According to the census of 1941, the population of Hafizabad City was 17,093 and the percentage of different communities was: Muslims 56.91%, Hindus 33.11%, Sikhs 6.32% and Christians 3.57%. While the population of Hafizabad tehsil was 205,952 and the percentage was: Muslims 76.70%, Hindus 10.90%, Sikhs 6.58% and Christians 5.74%.

The religious, cultural and historical importance of this gurdwara demands a better care of this gurdwara. Considering the religious nature of this post, I request readers to kindly point out if they find any mistake.

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About Me

My name is Tariq Amir. I have done my masters in English literature from FG College For Men H-8, Islamabad. Currently I am working in Al Kass Sports Channel, Qatar. My interests are reading history and maps.